Eternian Trap Ch 17 pt 1

Seventeen

  Planet Eternia
  Eternian Star System
  10 June 2017

   There were few events in Eternia's history that caused beings to sit up and take notice. The first had been Hordak's initial invasion that ended the reign of King Grayskull. The second had been the foretold coming of He-man. The third had been the return of He-man, and his subsequent fall to an overwhelming Horde force. This day would see another such event.
   Dawn graced the lands of Eternia as it had every day since the solar system had cooled and given birth to life. This day, however, would not be like those previous.
   Skeletor watched from his throne room in Snake Mountain. King Randor and Queen Marlena were also present, though the queen was less than thrilled. She chastised Skeletor for not sending a portion of his robot army to assist in the defense of Castle Grayskull. Skeletor flatly told her to keep quiet; otherwise she would not be allowed to watch the coming confrontation.
   Granamyr and Kodec Ungor observed from Darksmoke Mountain. Kodec's coming and going was such that no one had noticed her conspicuous absence. Off to one side in the main hall lay Adrian Cobretti. When the time was right, Granamyr would awaken Adrian from the recuperative sleep healing his damaged brain. The armor had done a pretty effective job of reversing the damage; however, Adrian had been forced to fight before the repairs could cement themselves. Using his morphing abilities started the deterioration resulting from the mind sifter to re-ignite. Granamyr was amazed at how easy it had been to draw the man to his mountain to heal him. Kodec suggested Adrian must have known on some instinctive level. Soon, Adrian would awaken, and Granamyr would send him to Castle Grayskull when he was needed the most.
   In the ruins of Zalesia, the Faceless One took note of events, and decided to watch. He did not care much for the world outside his domain after the Elders robbed him of his features and exiled him to this place. He was not an evil person like Skeletor, more misguided than anything else. Perhaps now was the time when he might find a way to redeem himself and end this punishment.
   Moria Vadorian watched from her sanctuary, surprisingly anxious. She knew the Sorceress would not ask her for help unless there was no other alternative, and that suited Moria perfectly. While she was adamant that Castle Grayskull remain out of King Hiss' possession, she was equally concerned for her daughter, Evil-Lyn. There were several reasons preventing Moria from taking a direct part in the battle and protect her daughter from harm, despite her wishes otherwise. The first was that King Hiss would see such interference as allying herself with the Earth people. Second, Moria and Evil-Lyn vowed to stay out of one another's affairs. Thus, Evil-Lyn was forced to fend for herself.
   The last group observing the coming battle was the Elders. Kodec Ungor's confidant, Corwin, watched the gathering of ancient beings as surreptitiously as possible. Most of the Elders appeared to be surprised by the near miraculous resurrection of the Sorceress of Grayskull. A few of them were not so surprised. Corwin suspected, as did Kodec, that some of the ancient beings knew how the Sorceress contracted the deadly degenerative disease. Corwin was beginning to think several may have even had a hand in engineering it before the plan was put into action to leave the starship Eternia and its lone passenger in orbit behind Earth's moon two years ago. All of which was mere speculation bordering on unthinkable flights of fantasy.
   All eyes were on Castle Grayskull and its tiny knot of valiant defenders. The chessboard was set. The opponents – Elders and Horde Prime – were ready. All that remained was to make the opening move.

******

   Very few soldiers of Colonel Markson's command remained inside Castle Grayskull. More had been deployed into the Evergreen Forest to hit the enemy from the flank or behind as the opportunities arose. Hit-and-run tactics was all that would really work against a force as big as the one grounded southeast of the Graylands. Scouts reported seeing serious firepower grinding its way across the barren lands toward the castle. Even with the formidable firepower of one APC, the War Machine, and two heavily armed dropships, any damage done to that army of Horde heavy weapons would be superfluous at best.
   Only Frost, Anyssa, Dhalon, and Colonel Markson remained in the castle with the Sorceress, aside from Andre Wardman, Private Gomez, and Catherine O'Rourke stationed up on the east tower. O'Rourke's team would act as surveillance for what the enemy did, and use javelin missiles to keep the Horde fighters at bay. Jon did not like the Sorceress' plan for dealing directly with King Hiss, but he wasn't a creature of magic like her, so he had to have faith that she knew what she was doing.
   All they could really do was hold out long enough for the Eternia to arrive with reinforcements. And hope the Horde didn't decide to level the castle after they discovered how costly it was going to be to take it intact.
   With all preparations complete, the Guardian Force settled in to wait for King Hiss and his Horde allies to arrive.

******

   King Hiss rode in a command carrier trundling along behind the lines of foot soldiers leading the way. Scout drones ranged ahead looking for enemy hiding places. Medium and heavy drones trudged along, backed up by scores of Mark One troopers and the black, humanoid-looking shocktroopers. Next came the assault carriers bringing more troopers and the three scores of Snake Men available for the attack. Command carriers, including Hiss' own, were at the center of the massive formation with the heavy artillery bringing up the rear.
   The front lines were intended to clear the way for Hiss and his Snake Men to get to Castle Grayskull, where Hiss would use his powerful magic to bring down the jawbridge. The Snake Men would deal with any Earthers foolish enough to remain inside to defend the castle while King Hiss dealt with the Sorceress. Given the report by Evil-Lyn and Blade about the battle in the Quaedian village, Hiss began to suspect the Sorceress might just have survived her ailment and his deadly venom. If so, he would make short work of her.
   Once the castle was firmly in his control, the robot forces would spread out to hunt down and destroy the remaining Earth people. Commander Franik would deal with the Eternia when it returned, and this foolish rebellion would come to an end.
   So they think our time is over? King Hiss mused. We shall soon see whose time has come to an end.
   Teela stood partially exposed through the top hatch, scanning the terrain ahead with electric binoculars. Nothing moved out there except their forces, and yet, she felt a trap was ready to be sprung at the proper moment. If these outlanders were nothing else, they had proven themselves to be very unpredictable. Maybe that was the predictable part about them. Evil-Lyn was certainly in a mood because of their failure in the Quaedian village. It pleased her to no end, though she was careful not to show it. Teela also wondered what had become of her mother. Despite still holding on to some residual anger over the Sorceress hiding Teela's true heritage from her, she had begun to understand the need for it of late. If Hiss had known of their blood relationship, he would have killed the Sorceress immediately. Teela would probably have been next because he would never be certain she wouldn't try to incite a rebellion against him.
   If he only knew the truth.
   General Rattlor was itching for a rematch with the changeling human. He needed to destroy the Earther lest any of Hiss' minions get ideas about challenging Rattlor to become the new general of King Hiss' army. Rattlor had already dispensed with four would-be idealist replacements, and more were starting to crop up. He had to prove he was still the strongest of the Snake Men next to King Hiss.
   King Hiss began to think the enemy did not have any traps to spring before the robot forces drew within range of the castle when the world exploded amid the lines of troopers and drones.

******

   "Frost," Colonel Markson called, gesturing to the computer terminals set up below the massive magical window.
   Frost and Anyssa darted to the computers and waited for the colonel's signal. Anyssa nodded after a quick lesson on how to switch the eighteen remote sentry guns from SAFE to ARMED. In their last battle, the Guardian Force had only had about eight guns. Retrofits to the troop compartments in the dropships turned them into storage spaces, which were then crammed with gear, ammo, rations, and anything else they might need. One dozen more units had been transported to complement the six from the APC.
   All the units had been set up in a skirmish line across the enemy's line of march. All were tucked into carefully disguised foxholes that were hard to spot until the guns began firing. They would be even harder to hit because Horde targeting software was not designed to deal with small targets. Horde Prime evidently considered small guns, soldiers, and one-man fighters to be of little threat. These forces were about to find out what a fatal error that rationale really was.
   Frost and Anyssa set the computers so that, at the colonel's command, a tap of the ENTER key will switch the sentries from SAFE to ARMED, and unleash a firestorm into the teeth of the enemy force.
   The Sorceress switched to a bird's eye view so Jon could better judge the distance between the sentries and the lead elements of King Hiss' army. Jon raised his left arm as the distance steadily shrank. Frost and Anyssa waited, anxiously anticipating the drop of that hand.
   Finally, the distance closed to killing range, and Colonel Markson snapped his arm downward. Anyssa and Frost were halfway across their respective banks of terminals before that arm traveled half the distance down to the colonel's side.
   Out on the battlefield, the result was much more spectacular. Scores of troopers blew apart before anyone knew the guns were there. The sounds of exploding robots warred with the staccato hammering from the remote sentries. Withering fire from eighteen guns equipped with dual five-hundred round canisters tracked back and forth in overlapping fields of fire. Textbook setup, but sometimes the simple things worked the best.
   A full minute passed before the better protected drones located the source of the enemy barrage, and began answering in kind with their deadly railguns. White vapor trails lanced out at the unseen enemy only to strike solid rock. The guns had been carefully placed for maximum protection while still allowing for unobstructed fire lanes. Several open corridors appeared as ammo canisters ran dry. Smoke drifting off tracking barrels betrayed hidden emplacements, and converging drone fire blasted them into scrap.
   Teela and several robot commanders scoured the terrain with binoculars, directing the return fire. Smoke drifting up from overheated gun barrels gave away those sentries still hammering the troopers. More colorful explosions dotted the landscape as the remaining sentries were taken out with ammo canisters still containing explosive rounds, adding fuel to the detonations.
   Surviving troopers and drones scanned the area for more threats, but found none. King Hiss ordered the advance to resume. If there were more traps awaiting them, the only way to discover them would be to spring them. After all, robots were expendable. Snake Men were not. At least not until their numbers increased to the same level they were at centuries ago.
   Colonel Markson stoically watched the advance resume. The Sorceress stood back, arms crossed, feather cape wrapped around her shapely form. She marveled at his calm demeanor and keen eye for controlling the battle, though this was nothing compared to what was to come. The modified control of the gigantic magical screen worked as she designed it to so that the colonel could instantly receive the view he wanted without waiting on her to provide it.
   So far things were progressing pretty much the way they had expected. It would be tricky implementing the next part of the plan without blatantly showing the trap for what it was.
   "Claymores," Colonel Markson ordered evenly.
   Hidden troops mashed clappers, igniting the lethal shaped charges. Shrapnel exploded into the front lines as the shaped charges blasted ball bearings into deadly corridors. Only a few troopers fell to the new attack. Most were damaged to varying degrees. The drones caught in the blasts suffered nothing more than superficial damage to their thick armor.
   "That's it. Everyone take cover until the next phase starts," Jon ordered. He turned to the Sorceress. "I sure hope you know what you're doing."
   "So do I," she answered.
   Jon waved Anyssa and Frost over to the spot of concealment previously picked out. Dhalon was already hidden somewhere near the passage to the jawbridge. The Sorceress turned and unhurriedly strode to the towering structure capped with the throne set in a skull-like face. There was plenty of time, so the Sorceress took her time climbing the steps. The act was as much a show of confidence to her companions as it was an attempt to soothe her nerves.
   How did I let you talk me into this? Sorceress asked Falcon.
   After showing you how powerful you've become, and how we can work together to defeat Hiss, Falcon responded with a touch of sarcasm, it took about ten seconds to talk you into this.
   Falcon's suggestion had been in line with the Sorceress' reasoning. If Hiss wanted the castle so badly, let him in. Then show him the true power of a Guardian. It was a good plan. Bold. Unexpected. Hiss would expect her to be a quick defeat. The Leader of the Snake Men would soon find out just how much of a 'bad' influence her new friends have been.
   Battle drones and Mark I troopers fanned out to secure the perimeter while the Snake Men dismounted from the assault carriers and cautiously approached the stone ramp leading up to the closed jawbridge. King Hiss and Evil-Lyn passed under the twin stone arches, keeping a weary eye out for sudden ambush.
   General Rattlor, Kobra Khan, and Tung Lasher stood guard at the base of the ramp scanning the tree line. They shifted about, ill at ease waiting for the hammer to fall. The enemy lay in wait for the right moment to strike in force. Rattlor knew it. Felt it.
   King Hiss, Evil-Lyn at his side, raised his staff and called forth his considerable power to pull down the jawbridge. Hiss felt the resistance almost immediately. Someone with considerable magical power was keeping the bridge closed. The jawbridge creaked and groaned as opposing magical forces acted upon it in powerful game of tug-o-war. King Hiss managed to ply the barrier open several feet before an unexpected surge of energy from within the castle slammed it shut.
   Evil-Lyn looked uncomfortable at the thought of someone as powerful as King Hiss waiting inside the castle resisting them. She thought of offering her assistance in pulling the bridge down, and then thought better of it. If King Hiss wanted her help, he would say so. Her job was to keep any defenders within at bay while King Hiss sought out the awesome power residing deep within the castle's ancient walls.
   Snarling, King Hiss launched a renewed attack. Five dark green wisps exploded from the staff clutched in his left hand. The rope-like wisps solidified somewhat into snakes with glowing yellow eyes. Three tendrils sank fangs deep into the wooden barrier. Two wound themselves around the iron cross bar. King Hiss curled his fist toward his body. The action translated to the energy ropes attached to the jawbridge. The bridge creaked and groaned once more only louder as King Hiss poured his might into the tendrils.
   Sitting upon her throne, the Sorceress leaned back with her eyes closed and right hand raised palm up. The fingers of that hand curled as if intending to form a fist. The action translated the power at her command into the action of keeping the jawbridge shut. Curling the fingers caused the bridge to bang shut from time to time. Relaxing the fingers let the bridge open. She was amazed at how effortless this really was. In the past, the Sorceress would have been hard pressed to keep the bridge closed for a minute or two against Skeletor's magical might. King Hiss should have had the bridge down in seconds, and yet, augmented by the Falcon armor, the Sorceress could have kept it closed indefinitely.
   Evil-Lyn was pleased to see the bridge finally come down. It struck the ramp solidly vibrating the entire structure. King Hiss was content to let Evil-Lyn lead the way. If an ambush awaited them, she would be the first target. Nothing of the sort waited, however, as the pair strode through the short passage emerging in the throne chamber. It did not take them long to spot the slumped figure up on the throne.
   King Hiss sensed someone behind him, and turned his head to regard Colonel Markson and his companions. Evil-Lyn slipped away, giving the Snake Man room to fight, if he was pressed.
   Everyone's attention was drawn back to the throne when the Sorceress spoke. "They are present to ensure a fair fight, King Hiss."
   "So, you survived after all," the reptile stated flatly.
   "No. I didn't. But I do have you to thank for my present condition. My rebirth, as it were," the Sorceress said in the same quiet tone she had used earlier. She must have been using magic to cast her voice clearly without having to enunciate. "It's because of you we are at this crossroad. Because of you I was finally struck down."
   The staff in King Hiss' left hand elongated to a full five feet, the snake carving curled around it lengthened to match. "Then you shall be struck down again!"
   The globe of raw magical power formed and launched instantly from the end of the snake staff. It crossed the distance to the throne in the blink of an eye and exploded in a blinding flash of light and concussive sound. Smoke billowed and radiated outward from the impact point obscuring the upper one-third of the platform.
   Colonel Markson, Frost, and Anyssa tensed as the smoke roiled around the top of the platform. Their initial reaction was to attack King Hiss, but the Sorceress had specifically warned against such foolhardiness.
   The Sorceress' voice drifted out of the slowly dissipating smoke cloud. "Castle Grayskull shall not be yours this day, King Hiss." The woman walked leisurely out of the cloud down the steps, wispy tails clinging futilely to her clothes.
   King Hiss did not show his surprise at the apparent power she possessed. A lesser being would have perished in the attack. "And how do you propose to stop me from taking the castle's secrets?"
   "Thanks to you, I have become more powerful than you can possibly imagine," the Sorceress replied. Sorceress continued down the stairs, her costume transformed into the black and gray 'uniform' for the Guardians. That lasted but a moment when the armor began to take shape, first as the segmented body armor similar to that worn by Colonel Markson, then fully becoming the eight foot tall suit of power armor as she reached the flagstone floor.
   Every living creature of magic possessed a second sight – sometimes called 'magic sight' - which allowed one to see the pale white aura surrounding wizards, sorcerers, sorceresses, witches, and the like. King Hiss switched to that sight to verify the truth of the Sorceress' proclamation. He saw only the brightness he had seen many times in the past, a formidable power level to be sure, but not one that could match his. Evil-Lyn's shone about as brightly the only time King Hiss had used his magic sight on her.
   Some of the more powerful creatures could alter that glow so another would see only what their adversary was meant to see. King Hiss discounted this possibility because he had seen nothing to suggest she was doing anything more than boasting. That in and of itself was interesting since the Sorceress was never prone to boasting.
   A panel on the Sorceress' left forearm dropped in and slid back revealing a compact white cylinder. She plucked the devised from the storage compartment, which closed up, and activated it. Rods extended out from either end to an overall length of five feet. The top end tapped outward beneath a globe that expanded until it sprouted wings and a head reminiscent of a falcon.
   "Then I shall see to it your demise becomes more permanent," the ruler of the Snake Men hissed, and launched himself at his foe.

******

   Colonel Markson ignored the blinding flash from the collision of power staffs. Whoever was in command outside sent a score of shocktroopers storming the castle's entrance. Robots rounded the corner as they emerged from the corridor before the trio could get into position to repel the invaders. A torrent of laser fire drove them back into cover among the half-moon shaped structure and support columns adjacent to the grand staircase. While the structure was suitable for cover, it left them with nowhere to run.
   "We're pinned down," Anyssa observed dryly.
   "We can't shoot around corners," Colonel Markson replied.
   "I can," Anyssa declared, snatching an arrow from the quiver slung across her back. A small red light began flashing at the touch of a concealed stud.
   Anyssa pulled the compact bow from its carry case, a squeeze of the control lever built into the handle started the amazing unfolding. Colonel Markson whistled at the sight, impressed. Frost handed his pulse rifle to the colonel, drew the pistol in a shoulder rig under his right arm, and yanked a flash/bang grenade from a D ring on his chest plate with the right hand. The safety pin and attachment ring pulled out of the arming lever Frost maintained a death grip on. Ready for action, Frost looked up and winked at Anyssa, who nodded curtly.
   While flash/bang grenades were designed simply to temporarily blind and deafen living beings, no one was sure how they would work against a robot's audio and visual sensors. They were about to find out as Frost dove from cover hurling the grenade as close to the entry corridor as he could. He landed hard on his right side, bracing the pistol with both hands, and snapped off rounds at the shocktroopers to hold them in place.
   The grenade exploded with the desired effects. The robots paused while their systems adjusted to the new tactic. Anyssa stepped out, drew back the bowstring, and took aim at the first shocktrooper, who was recovering and zeroing in on Frost. The bowstring sang with its release, firing the arrow across the chamber. The balance of the arrowhead was such that it lazily spun counter-clockwise. This in turn allowed Anyssa to ricochet the Etherium arrow off the lead trooper's chest to impale another in the passage.
   The surprised shocktrooper plucked the offensive shaft from its chest and stared at it curiously. The blinking light quickened as the sensor head counted down to zero. The explosion flung the lead robot Frost had been shooting at more than a dozen feet to land in a smoking, sparking ruin. Several more, including the one holding the arrow, were blown into the robot equivalent of oblivion.
   Anyssa stowed the bow while Frost scrambled to his feet; holstering the pistol and taking back his rifle. He and Colonel Markson chased after the warrior woman as she dashed to assist Dhalon, who had emerged from his hiding place to cut down shocktroopers with a war cry on his lips and a single-bladed axe in each fist. Anyssa reached for the curved short swords sheathed behind her shoulders. Together, she and the pint-sized Quaedian tore into the center of the charging mass of robots. Frost and Markson arrived to begin firing into the flanks. Each person had a designated corridor of responsibility to hold off the invaders.
   The tactic was simple and worked better than Jon hoped, even when he and Frost had to pause long enough to eject a spent magazine and replace it with a fresh one. Both men performed the reload from feel alone due to many years of training. Never once did they divert their eyes from the invading shocktroopers, or allow the barrel of their rifles to dip.
   It didn't take long to clear the corridor and jawbridge. Just a few minutes, though the four would have sworn it had taken longer. The remaining shock troops pulled back to defensive positions on and around the ramp. Colonel Markson called a ceasefire to take stock of their new situation.
   "What are they waiting for?" Dhalon growled eager to get back into the fight.
   Anyssa pointed, declaring, "That."
   Heavy battle drones – models equipped with a weapons pod on each arm – took up positions from which they could fire on the castle's entrance. They were backed up by medium-class drones and their single weapons pods. Shocktroopers and Mark I troopers took aim with their laser rifles. The total firepower was much more then the few defenders in the castle could hope to return in kind.
   "Oh, hell!" Colonel Markson hissed.
   The group reflexively ducked as railguns and laser rifles opened fire. Nothing got through, however. To Colonel Markson's astonishment, some kind of force field had been erected across the opening. The energy field rippled with each impact like a stone being thrown into the calm waters of a pond.
   "Get to the sides," Jon ordered unnecessarily, as his companions already did so.
   Frost retrieved his sniper rifle and precious limited supply of Etherium rounds from the nook Dhalon had hidden in. "That shield won't last long under such a heavy bombardment," he replied, loading the sniper rifle.
   "What do we do now?" Anyssa asked. "The Sorceress told us to stay out of her fight with King Hiss."
   Colonel Markson spoke urgently into his boom mike. Since there was nothing else to do but fight, Jon released his remaining forces to engage the enemy. If nothing else, they could take as many robots with them before the end.

******